Marking machine



Feb. 4, 1930. R. J. FORD 1,745,531

MARKING MACHINE Filed Dec. 29, 1927 INVENTOR 1 I I 12 t Tc bel'iJ 92rd A A fQfl F) AT ORNEY Patented Feb. 4, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT: OFFICE ROBERT J. FORD, OF BRISTOL, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR TO NATIONAL INDIA RUB- -IBER COMPANY, OEBRISTOL, RHODE ISLAND, A CORPORATION OF RHODE ISLAND MARKING MACHINE Application filed December 29, 1927. Serial No. 243,286.

This invention relates to improvements in marking machines. More particularly it relates to an improved marking machine for printing characters or figures over an enlarged area.

Machines of the type disclosed heretofore used for printing with ink have been adapted for printing over a narrow area, as for example, a single row of number s or letters. Any further designs or characters have been printed upon the article either manually or by a separate machine. Such a procedure has been time consuming and wasteful and the resulting imprint has often been blurred and indistinct and not properly arranged with respect tothe article or to the other printed characters.

It is an object of this invention to provide a mechanism for printing characters of various sorts overan enlarged area. It is a further object to provide an improved mechanism for presenting an inking means to the printing dies and for removlng theinking means from the path of the dies. Other objects will be apparent from the accompanying specification and from the drawings, in which latter:

V v Fig. 1 is aperspective view of the marking machine;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective 716W. of a portion of the head of the machine showing the bearing rod; 4 T Fig. .3 is an enlarged transverse section through the head of a machine showing in dotted lines the inking means at various stages of its travel; and 1 ink holding means are provided which are adapted to be actuated to apply ink to the face of the dies when thedies are withdrawn from the article and are actuated to be withdrawn from the path of the dies without striking the article.

Referring particularly to the drawings, the device comprises a head 1 adapted to are pivotally carried by the main supporting frame 5. Rocker arm 3 is actuated to swing the head 1 to and from printing position by 'means of the connecting rod 6. Connecting rod 6 is driven in any suitable manner (not shown) by means of the drive shaft 7. The article 8 to be printed, such as the insole of a shoe, can be disposed upon the support 9. A sponge rubber pad 10 can, if desired, be positioned under the article opposite the area which the dies strike and functions to dissipate some of the forces of impact of the head of the machine. The dies 2 and the operatin means for the die head 1 are part of an ordinary commercial machine for printing numbers, letters, etc. The dies 2* and 2"v have been added for the purpose of printing trade marks, emblems, etc., and are held by a tongue and groove connection in a frame 2 rigidly secured to the lower part of the die head 1.

The dies are coated with ink at the time whenthey are adj acentthe end of their travel away from the article support. The ink hol ing means comprises an ink pad 11 which is carried in the holder 12. In the commercial machine using only the dies 2, the ink pad is comparatively short and is mounted -to swing downwardly in an .arc out of the way as the dies descend to printing position. With the elongated printing mechanism including the dies 2 and 2 the inking pad must be made so long that it cannot be thus swung out of the way, as the distance between the printing bed and the upper position of the dies is too short, and ,the ink pad holder 12 of the present invention is withdrawn by the mechanism to be now described.- The holder 12 is pivotally supported in the projecting arms 13 of the bracket 14 by means of a pintle 15 which extends through the ink pad holder and projects into the elongated slots 16 of the arms 13. The bracket 14 is pivotally supported in the main supporting frame 5. The bracket 14 is pivotally moved during reciprocation of the head .1 by means' of the connecting rod 17. The connecting rod is adj ustably secured to the head 1 and is secured to one of the bracket arms 13 by'means of a shoulder 18 which slidably engages in the elongated slot 19. As the head of the machine is forced downwardly toward the article, the bracket arms 13 turn on their pivots, and their ends move in the are of a circle to a position laterally of the path of the dies. The slots 16 are provided in order that the ink pad holder can be elevated slightly in case the holder should strike any obstruction which might accidently be positioned upon the Work support 9. This feature permits of play in the supporting mechanism of the ink pad holder and prevents unnecessary strain should the ink pad holder meet with an obstruction in its path.

\Vhen the head of the machine is adjacent the upper end of its path, the ink pad is maintained in yielding engagement with the" faces of the dies by means of a bearing rod 20 which is rigidly afiixed to the ink pad holder 12 and a cam portion 21 of which has sliding engagement with the support 22. As the head 1 is driven toward the article support, the connecting rod 17 forces the bracket arms 13 in rotary movement through the successive stages illustrated in dot and dash lines in Fig. 3. .This movement brings the base of the ink pad holder into closer proximity to the support 22. During this movement, the cam surface 21 of the rod 20 passes from the position shown in full lines in Fig. 3 through the positions illustrated in dot and dash lines. The slope of the cam surface is such that asthe'base of the ink pad holder is drawn closer to the support 22, the rod 20 will force the ink pad holder in pivotal movement with respect to the bracket arms 13 outwardly away from the article support 9, maintaining it in spaced relation to the support. The successive positions of the ink pad holder are shown in dot and dash lines in Fig. 3. The ink pad holder, bracket arms and bearing rod, pass successively through the same positions upon the outward stroke of the head away from the article support. It will be noted that the forward part of the ink pad holder passes in an elliptical path of travel, being drawn in a sharp curve at the beginning of its downward path and being drawn more directly rearwardly at the later portion of its travel. The ink pad holder passes in a compound movement, its rear end connected to arms 13 moving in the arc of a circle and the remainder thereof passing through a relatively shortened path. The ink holding means is maintained substantially parallel with the faces of the dies. As a result of this lateral translation of the ink holding means, the latter is maintained in. spaced relation to the support in the area immediately surrounding the area of impact of the die with the article. Consequently,

the ink holding means is maintained clear of the article throughout its path of travel.

In the operation of the device, an article such as an insole is positioned upon thesupport 9. I The amount'of reciprocation of the head of the machine is adjusted so that the dies can be forced into firm engagement with the article. The head is removed from the article-support to the position illustrated in Fig. 1, at which position the ink is supplied to the dies by means of the ink pad 11. The head is then actuated to make a downward stroke, pressing the dies against the article. During this stroke, the ink holding means is forced laterally by a compound movement to a position at one side of the path of travel of the dies and at the same time is maintained in spaced relation to the article support in the area immediately adjoining the area of impact of the dies with the article, thereby clearing the article.

It wlll, of course, be obvious thatmany changes can be made in the details of the construction without departure from the principles underlying this invention, and reference should therefore be made to the accompanying claims for an understanding of the scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

- 1. A marking machine comprising a printing bed, an elongated printing element, means for moving said element to printing position downwardly and outwardly in parallelism to said bed, an inking pad adapted to contact with the printing element when the latter is in raised position, and means including cam mechanism and a pivotal connection to the pad for imparting a compound downward and rearward movement to it during a down-v ward movement of the printing element.

2. marking machine comprising a printing element, means for imparting a movement thereto to cooperate with a printin bed, an inking pad adapted to contact wit said element when the latter is spaced from the bed, a pivotally mounted support having for bodily moving the pad in an arc and simultaneously pivotally moving it on its pivotal connection, said last named means including a cam associated with said pad and cooperating with a stationary part of the machine.

3. A marking machine comprising a printing element, a printing bed, means for moving said element into cooperation with the.

a pivotal connection with the pad, and means said element when the latter is spaced from the bed, a pivotally mounted support pivotally connected to the bed, an actuating connection for said support, means for actuating it in unison with the printing element, and cam means for simultaneously tilting the inking pad.

5. A marking machine comprising a printing element, means for imparting movement thereto to coo erate with a printing bed, an inking pad a apted to contact with said element when the latter is spaced from the bed, a pivotally mounted support having a pivotal connection with the pad, and means for imparting a compound downward and rearward movement to the inking pad during a downward movement of the printing element, said inking pad being bodily shiftable on its pivotal connection relative to said suport.

p 6. A marking machine comprising a printing element, means for imparting movement thereto to cooperate with a printing bed, an inking pad adapted to contact with said element when the latter is spaced from the bed, a pivotally mounted support having a pivotal connection with the pad, and means for imparting a compound downward and rearward movement to the inking pad during a downward movement of the printing element, said pivotal connection constituting pin and slot connections between said support and the inking pad.

Signed this 22ndday of December, 1927, at Bristol, county of Bristol, State of Rhode Island.

' ROBERT J. FORD. 

